3 Certifications IT Professionals Should Pursue in 2018

Information technology is an ever-changing field with new certifications and credentials gaining traction every day. In fact, an estimated 91 percent of employers now believe technical credentials in the IT industry predict employee success, according to data from the Computing Technology Industry Association. Here are 3 of today’s most respected IT certification programs capable of lifting IT professionals at all levels to new heights.

CISSP
The International Information System Security Certification Consortium offers what is perhaps the most illustrious data security certificate program available, Dark Reading reported. It’s predicted that as many as 3.5 million positions could require the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) by 2021, according to research from Cybersecurity Ventures.

Candidates for the CISSP credential must have at least five years of full-time work experience, including two years in at least two of the eight domains covered in the program. Finally, Individuals who meet the prerequisites must achieve a passing score of 70 percent on the 250-question CISSP exam.

PMP
Project management skills have become a significant commodity within the IT sector, as firms of all sizes continue to embrace the dev/ops approach and other agile methodologies emphasizing, speed, responsiveness and collaboration. This makes the Project Management Professional certification from the Project Management Institute an ideal credential for IT workers who want to flourish in the project-based production era and eventually assume leadership roles, PC Magazine reported.

Those intending to register for the 200-question multiple-choice test that acts as the basis for the program must have secondary degrees – this includes high school diplomas and associate’s degrees – 7,500 hours of PM leadership and 35 hours of PM education. Aspiring PMP holders can also gain entrance with a bachelor’s degree, 4,500 hours of PM direction experience and 35 hours of PM education.

While the PMP certification process requires considerable work, it grants workers new opportunities in the IT space and also catalyzes increases in pay. The average PMP holder earns 20 percent more than his or her non-credentialed colleagues, according to The PMI Institute.

AWS Certified Solutions Architect
Cloud adoption continues to rise. An estimated 95 percent of enterprises are now running applications on the cloud or toying with Software-as-a-Service deployments, analysts for RightScale found. IT professionals can prepare for and take advantage of accelerated cloud usage by bolstering their credentials in this area. But with the number of providers growing daily, it can be difficult to decide which proprietary cloud technology on which to focus. A quick glance at the marketplace can quickly solve this problem. Amazon Web Services controls more than 30 percent of the market share, dwarfing its closest competitors Microsoft and Google TechCrunch reported.

AWS offers the Certified Solutions Architect – Associate credential for IT workers interested in learning the ins and outs of the cloud computing platform. Candidates must have one or more years of experience working with AWS, knowledge of at least one programming language and be able to deploy secure, reliable hybrid systems to take for the 80-question qualification exam. The test covers numerous key concepts, including application design, lift-and-shift migration, project costing and more. AWS also offers the Certified Solutions Architect – Professional certificate which builds on these ideas and further empowers IT workers to embrace the cloud.